Bolt
by KaleidoscopeHeavens
Summary: The two pegasi knew there could only be one. One who could fly with the best. One who could fulfill their dreams. One who could destroy the other's hope. And when hope is crushed, anger arises. ** Original story on fimfiction by author KaleidoscopeHeavens
1. The Race

Bolt by KaleidoscopeHeavens

* * *

The Race

This was it.

Years of accumulated training has lead up to this moment. She felt her heart skip a beat. _No,_ she thought. _I can't be nervous._ She adjusted her hooves on the fluffy gray cloud, listening to the rain fall down steadily. Four pegasi were adjacent to herself. One, a turquoise mare, was named Lightning Dust. She had been Rainbow Dash's rival for the past three years at the Academy. She didn't know a day when Lightning wasn't glaring at her. Another was a white stallion with a light grey mane, a determined look set in his eyes. She didn't know his name, but she had often seen him around the Academy. And at last was the cream colored mare. Her pink mane was frizzy and her eyes drooped with exhaustion. She would be easy to beat.

"Ya know the rules!" A dark gray stallion called out on top of his cloud. A whistle hung from his neck and his hard gaze raked over the new recruits. "First one to pass the course becomes a Wonderbolt. I don' want no cheatin', ya hear?"

It sounded easy enough, but it wasn't. The pegasi had to pass a massive thundercloud that randomly gave off bolts of electricity, then glide through a field of tornadoes unharmed, then they had to navigate through a massive amount of fog to get to the finish line.

They had all undergone many tests before this one, all testing their limits. Rainbow Dash had witnessed many pegasi fail the tests and drop out of the Academy. She was of one the few who had made it to the final test, the test that could change her life. It was, by far, the most difficult test a pegasi could go through. But she was ready to prove herself.

On the sidelines, a pale blue pegasus stallion stood with his eyes alight with excitement. It was his turn to preside over the Final Trial, to determine who the next Wonderbolt would be. He had a basic knowledge of all the recruits, especially the rainbow-mained one. She was famed for being the first pegasi ever to perform the elusive Sonic Rainboom. She had must've done it three times. Soarin' was impressed, but she still needed to pass this test in order to become a Wonderbolt. No exceptions.

"Ready?" The gray stallion gruffly shouted from his cloud.

Rainbow Dash licked her lips.

"Set?" He lifted the whistle to his mouth.

Her wings snapped open.

"_**GO!**_" His whistle was barely heard over the sound of the pegasi taking off. The world around the recruits erupted into a raging storm. High winds blew from every direction, throwing the tired cream-colored mare into the white stallion. Rain came down and battered them in the face, smudging the lenses of their goggles. Rainbow Dash let out a grunt of pain as hail abruptly hit her forehead, and soon huge amounts came from the cloud-covered sky. She braved on, ignoring the sharp jabs of pain that accompanied the hail. Her wings beat the air, and through the thick, tense air she climbed, half blind from the hail and rain. She was aware of another presence by her side, and saw a flash of turquoise. _Lightning Dust,_ she thought. She tried to force her way through the difficult weather, but found no way of escaping.

Then, she was met with a great thundercloud. It was so large, its expanse shadowed both the East and West horizon. Lightning bolts erupted from its surface, like great tentacles that snapped at whatever it touched. The face of the great thundering beast glared down her, making her stop, just for a heartbeat. A flash of yellow tore past her eyes and she was met with an aqua mare. She sped past, yelling over her shoulder, "Too slow, Rainbow _Crash!_" she turned away and dove easily between the bolts.

She snorted angrily and forced her wings to move at a fast pace as she deftly avoided the snaps of lightning that lit the surface of the cloud. The air frizzled from the electricity, and she feel her fur rising on her back as she narrowly missed another strike. Her eyes set on a small turquoise blur that skimmed the surface of the thundering madness. Smirking, she lowered herself on the cloud, letting her hooves gingerly caress the outer layer of the cloud. She felt the great booms of the lightning underneath her periwinkle hoof. Finally she met with Lightning Dust, her golden tail tickling her nose. She smiled and swerved around the pegasus, sliding sideways as to run atop the hefty black cloud. Her hooves beat steadly on the gray ground, and she met the surprised gaze of Lightning Dust. Smirking, she maneuvered her hooves off the cloud just as a lightning bolt erupted. Lightning Dust was so surprised by her sudden appearance that the lightning strike met her hoof, causing her to scream out in pain. Dash abruptly stopped, cringing. She hadn't meant to harm her. She quickly dove underneath the now unconscious pony and let her rest on her back. She flew away from the storm, her breath billowing out in short gasps and dropped her off on a soft, white cloud, before returning to the race.

Rainbow Dash streaked through the first obstacle course, desperately hoping that she had made up lost time. As the last bolt dissipated, she ripped up through the rough winds, and was met with a new obstacle. A large field of tornadoes met her gaze. They were not too close to converge into one, but each was enough to throw an inexperienced pegasus every which way. But she wasn't an inexperienced pegasus.

She spun through the air, wings beating at exactly the right pace. The first tornado approached, its absurd wind pattern tearing at her mane and tail. She gingerly entered the winds of the tornado, jarring her from her place and spinning her in a clockwise direction. She beat her wings along with winds, howling filling her ears and leaves from distant trees plastering her flight goggles. When she was at maximum speed, she saw another tornado close by, its wind going at a similar pace and direction as the current tornado. She spent a few minutes catching glimpses of the other tornado, making sure her observation was right. Her wings dug heavily through the air, making sure she didn't fall into the heart of the tornado. Finally, Dash folded her wings and pushed off from the tornado, causing it to warble. She rocketed to the next one, a smug look on her face. _I figured out your little trick, Wonderbolts._

She landed in the next one, her wings aching under the harsh weight of the winds. She willed her self to pull through, and the next three minutes were her observing another nearby tornado. This one was larger, but its pattern the same. Copying her previous move, she landed deftly on the outer ring of the thrashing tornado. She carried on with the same technique, eyes darting and wings flashing. And after what seemed like an hour, she reached the last tornado, huge with large wind-filled appendages that lashed out into air. She breathed in, her lungs being filled in with tangy, dirty air, and let go.

She was in the last tornado, It's big howling winds prominent amongst the others. Dash pulled herself away just in time, to be met with the final obstacle.

She took a sharp intake of breath. Around her was nothing but gray. The winds were gone, the tornado had thrusted her into a world where there was nothing but gray for miles, at least. She instantly panicked. A pegasus had a great sense of direction and the eyes of a hawk, but no pegasi dared venture into such a large amount of fog. They would lose their most acute senses. And here she was, amongst the most daunting thing known to pegasi. Exhaling and inhaling deeply, she ventured in, going completely straight. That's what they always told her. _Always go forward._

Eventually, Rainbow Dash moved faster, always going straight. The only sound was her wings and her quickly beating heart. A slight ringing started in her ears, reminding of her of how quiet this place was. Minutes passed, and the fog did not let on. She felt her panic rising again, but shoved it down. _It's just fog,_ she told herself. _I'm not scared of anything, so why should I be afraid of fog?_

A sudden sound made her jump. It was a deep sound, a sound similar to large wings cutting through the air. Her mind reverted to the time when she was a child, when she read stories of the Great Winged Beast. A monkey-like thing with no fur, only on the top of their heads, and wings that reached six feet wide. Its eyes were round, filled with intellect beyond their years, and had rough skin the color of peaches. It was designed to scare fillies, but when Dash heard this noise, her heart stopped.

But just as soon as it began, it halted. She felt the breath return to her lungs as she ventured on, unfazed by the sound. _If there were wings that big,_ she thought, comforting herself, _they would disintegrate the fog._ Dash laughed at her self, and continued to speed through the fog. It was all her imagination.

Throughout the rest of the obstacle, she thought she picked up traces of the sound again, but it disappeared soon afterwards. _It's just your imagination, it's just your imagination._ This helped nothing; she felt the panic rise up in her.

Finally, when the beating of wings reached closer, she whipped around, accusing eyes wildly dancing around the gray landscape. "_Who's there?_" she cried, her voice echoing through the nothingness. When nothing responded, she continued on, casting frantic glances around as she heard the deafening sound once more. She whipped around, hooves poised and ready to attack and yelled, "_Show yourself!_"

Then she was met with the source the noise. The sound was not of great wings beating the air, no, it was her own panicked imagination that had caused this. Instead, it was the sound of a regular pony's wings. Her gaze widened as she met the angry gaze of a singed turquoise pony. She quickly approached the shocked cyan pegasus, eyes flashing. "Think you can get rid of me so easily, huh?"

Rainbow Dash stuttered. "But I-"

"A shock of lightning, that's it? You think you take me out of the game, just like _that?_" She spiraled Dash. "Two can play at that game!" she scowled and then brought her hoof down harshly on Rainbow Dash's wing. She felt it stiffen, and she struggled to keep her composition as it fell loosely on her back. "_You'll never be a Wonderbolt._" Lightning Dust sneered, speeding away as Rainbow Dash fell through the thick fog.

And suddenly she was falling. Her mind was blank with shock, and she watched as the thick clouds of fog succumb her. Her pale blue wings hit against the nearly solid fog clouds. She saw a lightning streak head for the finish line and she knew that she had lost. An image of the turquoise mare in a bright Wonderbolts outfit drained into her mind, another with her in the back, a look of defeat etched on her tired face. Yellow eyes met magenta ones. "_You will never be a Wonderbolt._" it snapped.

_No._ Her wings unfurled and beat quickly through the thick air. _I __**will**__ be a Wonderbolt._

Her wings gathered force. She zoomed through the thick tendrils of fog, leaving a faint rainbow trail behind her, ignoring the panic that rose up in her. When the fog dispersed, she saw the finish line half a mile away. Lightning Dust was halfway there, a triumphant look on her face. Rainbow Dash let out a faint wail of despair. _No!_ She willed her wings to go faster, faster, faster. A faint cone formed around her hooves. Tears gathered around her eyes, but it wasn't from the wind.

Faster.

Faster.

_Faster!_

The cone broke. A large spectrum cascaded from the explosion. She was suddenly pushed forth, her wings brushing past Lightning Dust. Her eyes widened with anger as she saw the rainbow-maned pegasus quickly pass her. She forced her wings to move quickly, but to no avail. She watched as blue blur cross the finish line, leaving a rainbow trail behind her.

"_Rainbow Dash!_" her hate-filled scream ripped from her throat, lost in the cold winds.

Soarin' watched, jaw agape, as the rainbow pegasus performed her acclaimed Sonic Rainboom. The large explosion shattered the winds and fog, and a rainbow trail soon emerged, and headed for the finish line. He gawked as he caught a glimpse of the pegasus who had caused it zipped past the finish line, not slowing down. Something was wrong. The pegasus wasn't slowing down. She bounced off a few clouds, as if to lose force. Rainbow Dash soon bore down, the rainbow trail still loyally following her, and hit the ground. Soarin' lifted himself off the cloud, and turned to the gray stallion. "Get some help!" he told him, the stallion's eyes were wide with awe as he nodded.

_I did it._ She relaxed her whole body, feeling scratches and bruises. She opened her eyes and struggled to get up, but screamed in pain instead. Her left foreleg was broken, and the wing in which Lightning Dust had kicked throbbed in pain, probably broken too. She rested her face in the dirt, her belly brushing against the dusty ground. Her vision was blurry.

A sound was beside her. It was the sound of rushing wings and a scared voice. She blinked, and saw a pale blue stallion looking at her with wide green eyes. "D-Did I make it in?" she asked faintly. Her head wobbled.

He blinked, surprised she would ask such a question in this state. "Uh... y-yeah. I think you did."

"Good." She breathed, and closed her eyes, a smile on her face.


	2. The Shadows

Bolt by KaleidoscopeHeavens

* * *

The Shadows

She felt rage tear at her very being. Her heart burned with a fiery passion, beating frantically against her chest. Her hooves shook from the force of her own anger, smashing into the fertile earth. Her eyes blazed, her great amber depths livid and furious. She tore at the blue and yellow suit, useless and meaningless now, and left the pieces beside the roots of a gnarled tree.

She had landed in the nearest forest after the trial. After Rainbow Dash had performed the sonic rainboom. After Rainbow Dash won the trial. After she had become a Wonderbolt. After Lightning Dust failed.

Anger pulsed through her once more. She cried out in anguish. She lifted herself in the air, destructively attacking all the clouds that dared opposed her. The rough gray clouds, neglected by a pegasus' caring hoof, tore difficultly underneath the enraged mare's hooves, emitting a loud ripping noise each time hoof met cloud. _You failed, _a voice screamed in her head. _You failed, you failed, you __**failed.**_ Soon, there was nothing left in the sky above the dank forest.

_I failed._ She dropped to her knees, anger gone. Tears fell through her half-lidded eyes. She will never be a Wonderbolt. Her weak legs fell beneath her shaking body. Sobs echoed through the dark forest. Small woodland creatures watched the strange mare weep beneath the thick oak trees, then carried on with their business, oblivious to the pain that wrenched the poor mare's heart.

"_Lightning..._"

A whisper in her ear disturbed Lightning from her weeping. Her tear-filled eyes darted between the trees, searching for some mythical monster to eat her up. "W-who's there?" she called out, voice cracking. She stood up and wiped the tears from her face and brought her hooves up in a defensive position. "What do you want?"

"_Lightning..."_ came the eerie whisper again. Lightning Dust spun around, looking for the source of the sudden whispers. "We've been eagerly awaiting the arrival of the best flier of Equestria..."

Lightining's wings drooped. "I suppose your looking for Rainbow Dash, then..."

"No!" A harsh snap surprised her. Three figures emerged from the shadowy depths of the forest. A mare stood out, her light gray body covered in a dark, leathery uniform, resembling a Wonderbolt uniform, but darker. Two stallions stood by her side, with a darker color palette and the same uniform. "_You_ are the greatest flier," the mare said with a sultry voice. "With us, you can be the most famous flier in all of Equestria."

Lightning Dust looked at them in astonishment. "Who are you?"

The mare flashed out her wings, a clammy gray color. Her yellow flight goggles glowed as she proclaimed. "We are the Shadowbolts, the best flyers in the Everfree forest. With you by our side all will know our terror." A malicious grin spread across her face.

The frightened mare blinked, uncertain how to process this. "Why do you want me?"

The gray mare guided her with a wing to a nearby pool. With a gentle shove of the head, she showed the turquoise mare her reflection. She stifled her breath as she looked down at a tired pegasus mare with sad red eyes, tear tracks plainly visible on her dull coat. The once luxurious golden mane now lacked it's previous beauty, and was now a rough and messy nest. This was the face of a tired, failed pony.

"Imagine," the mare continued. "a pony with great confidence. A pony whose skill outmatched those before her. Whose talents could be used against the ones who betrayed her. A pony that could be you."

Lightning let her imagination run wild, thinking of herself, eyes triumphant, strong body, golden hair flowing in the wind. She imagined a hoof rested upon Rainbow Dash's skull, ready to crush the one who had brought her down. She smiled weakly.

The Shadowbolts grinned. The mare rose her voice. "With us, you can be that and more. With us, we can take over Equestria and destroy the weak Wonderbolts! We will be feared! We will be loved! We will be victorious!"

Lightning Dust raised her eyes to the grinning mare. She would never be a Wonderbolt. She would never know the joy of flying alongside her childhood heroes, no. But she will have something else. Something better. She would be a Shadowbolt.

"I'm in."


	3. The Celebration

Bolt by KaleidoscopeHeavens

* * *

The Celebration

The sun filtered in the small hospital room, its golden rays hitting a sleeping pegasi's eyes directly. She stirred and rolled over, trying to avoid waking up. _Stupid sun..._

"Is she awake?"

She ruffled the covers with her hooves, groaning.

"Pinkie Pie, stand back."

She threw the sheets over her head, desperately trying to sleep again.

"Oh, guys! I think she's awake!"

The covers were abruptly thrown off. Her eyes flew open, falling on a pink mare whose face was a mere inch away. She jumped and yelled in surprise, hitting her head on the bed frame. She rubbed her temples. _Pinkie..._ She groaned inwardly.

The excited mare lept up from where she was standing. She hopped around the room, giggling excitingly. "She's awake!"

Rainbow Dash sighed and sat up. Her wing was erect, bandaged heavily and still slightly aching. Her foreleg was in a heavy cast, and hurt every time she lightly grazed a surface. She cringed, hoping her injuries were worth it. Her mind flitted with images depicting her as a Wonderbolt, and her heart rose.

Her letter hadn't arrived yet.

A circle of friends surrounded her bed, soft smiles on their faces as they watched Pinkie bounce around the room excitedly. Rainbow watched as the joyful mare stayed still long enough to slightly vibrate over the ground, and turned to a yellow mare beside her. "Fluttershy, what's going on?" She narrowed her eyes in suspicion.

Her turquoise eyes widened with shock. "You mean you don't know?" She turned nervously to Rarity, hiding under her rosy mane. Rarity rolled her sapphire eyes at the pegasi's shyness and gave Rainbow Dash a hesitant look.

"I thought they might've told you by now, darling!" She raised an ivory hoof to anxiously play with her violet mane. "I don't know if it's my place to tell you..."

Rainbow Dash looked irritably at her friends. "What is it?"

Applejack coughed. "What they mean to tell ya is..." She looked away, avoiding Rainbow Dash's gaze.

Twilight sighed. "Well, while you were unconscious-"

"A letter arrived!" Pinkie Pie interjected, voice a little more high-pitched than usual.

Rainbow Dash raised an eyebrow. _Could it be?_

Twilight gave Pinkie an exasperated look. "We didn't read it but-"

"We looked at the sender and stuff!" Pinkie giggled.

Twilight bit her lip. "Yes, and if I might say," she gave Pinkie a stern look before levitating a folded letter from her saddle bag. "It looked fairly important."

Rainbow Dash looked with bated breath as the letter was hovered over to her. She gently picked the letter up, eyes skimming over the emblem that embellished the sky blue letter. A golden bolt glimmered on its surface. She sat for a few minutes staring at the letter, letting each crease and fold sink into her mind.

She opened the letter slowly, as to not damage the paper, and lifted the letter out. She unfolded, eyes quickly scanning over the letters.

Rainbow Dash stopped reading. She felt her breath come back in short gasps. Her eyes filled with tears and she dropped the letter. She felt her limbs go numb, her eyes bulging as tears dropped from her face. Her head fell in her hooves as she sobbed. Her friends watched in despair as they continued to watch their distraught friend break down. Rarity hurriedly came over to Rainbow Dash and gently placed a hoof on her shoulder. "There, there darling. You can always continue to work for the weather team, I'm sure-"

"Are you kidding?" The five mares looked at the rainbow pegasus in shock. She lifted her face from her hooves, revealing a watery grin. She wiped the tears off quickly, her cheeks turning red. Her tears were not that of sad tears. They were tears of joy. "_I got in!_" she cried out, laughs erupting from her. "I finally got _in!_"

A moment later the blue pegasus was surrounded by her friends. All were chanting their congratulations, tears also filling their eyes. Fluttershy had pushed her hair back, her canary yellow face bright with excitement for her old friend. Rarity was wiping her eyes with a cloth, lips quivering. Applejack was cheering loudly, taking her Stetson off and throwing it into the air. Twilight had her mouth agape, but she slowly smiled gleefully, sparks emitting from her lilac horn. Pinkie Pie was now literally bouncing from walls at light speed, until she finally settled down to bouncing in one spot beside the bed. "Hey! You know what this calls for?"

"A _party!_"

The mares stood in Sugarcube Corner, babbling on, clutching bubbly drinks. Music played loudly due to a certain white unicorn at the turntable, dancing while she scratched the records. A brown stallion with an hourglass cutie mark danced unabashedly, his hooves horribly out of synch with the music. Rainbow Dash stood in the center, occasionally being congratulated by a guest or being squeed at by Pinkie Pie. A broad grin donned her young face, drinking generous amounts of the bubbly drinks the Cakes provided. She leaned against a crutch as she swayed to a loud beat played by Vinyl Scratch.

A purple earth pony waved her hooves wildly at Rainbow Dash. She thrusted her drink into the air in Dash's name, watching sadly as some of the drink sloshed out of her cup. Others joined, their loud voices mingling with the music, deafening the blue mare. When they were done, Rainbow laughed heartily. "I told you guys-" she hiccuped loudly, turning to her friends. "I'm the best flyer in 'Questria!" She burped.

Applejack waved her hoof in front of her muzzle. "Certainly have the stinkiest burps, that's for sure."

Rainbow Dash whinnied audibly. A red blush creeped across her cheeks. "Sorry."

Pinkie Pie laughed, falling over on her back. "I don't think-" she giggled. "I have _ever_ seen Rainbow like this!"

Rainbow Dash blinked slowly, struggling to balance on her crutch. "Neither 'ave I." she murmured, before she waddled away.

* * *

"_Soarin'!_ Look over here!"

Another light flashed in front of his eyes. Celestia, he _hated_ paparazzi. He flew past the huddled hordes of pegasi, their cameras making sure not to miss one inch of him. He lifted his goggles off his eyes as soon he pushed through the crowd that gathered around him. The smile that was left to impress the press fell off his face, to be replaced with a tired grimace. He was inside the locker room of the Wonderbolts, quickly disposing the suit that clung to his body.

It was right after an air show. A particularly draining one. Soarin' was bent out of shape, so tired his wings drooped heavily, but he knew just the solution to his problem. An apple pie so good that it melts inside your mouth, warming the tongue with its gold fluids. And he knew just where to get one.

He zoomed quickly to his locker, perked up at the thought of delicious apple pie. The locker swung open, a flight suit and goggles landing within seconds in it. The pale azure stallion sighed as he slammed the locker behind him, heading for the office nestled in the corner of the large room. He opened the door, unsurprised to see a yellow pegasus mare leaning over a hefty amount of paperwork.

"Come on, Spitfire. Live a little! You never do anything besides work." he groaned.

Spitfire had always been focused on keeping the Wonderbolts intact, never letting one flier slip. She was a strict captain, but she did her job well. The other fliers respected her, including himself. Sometimes, when she was feeling particularly cheerful, she was laid back and fun. But, truly, she was more focused on her work than she was on her friends. She didn't lift her eyes from her work. "Can't. Maybe you remember we're getting a new member? Weren't _you_ the one observing her? Weren't _you_ the one who suggested her?"

He sighed. "Yes."

Her stern orange eyes met his. "Then I am not going to stop working. New members means more money and press. Therefore, more paperwork."

He looked over the desk. She quickly tried to shuffle it away in her desk, but he was too quick. He grabbed the papers and quickly read them.

_**JACK FROCK'S SURPRISING PLOT PICTURES**_

_**WANT TO HAVE SEXY EYES? TEN TIPS TO MAKE YOUR EYES LOOK LIKE A MOVIE STAR'S!**_

He raised an eyebrow at Spitfire. "Work, huh?"

Spitfire flinched, a heavy red blush blanketing her face. "If you don't tell the rest of the team... I... I'll do anything you want!"

Soarin' smiled. He loved it when Spitfire begged for her life. "I want to get some pie from Ponyville."

Spitfire glared at him while shoving the explicit content in her desk. "You can't do that! We have practice tomorrow!"

"Hey Rapidfi-"

She shoved a hoof in his mouth. "Fine! Just don't tell anyone you're going out! I don't want the whole team asking for a day off."

He grinned, walking out the door of the office. _Totally rocking the airshow? Check._ He closed the door and left Spitfire to her business. He lifted off, leaving the locker room and the gaggle of photographers behind in a dark blue flash. _Get Spitfire to let me get some apple pie? Check!_ He flew out of Canterlot, hearing fans cry out behind him, but ignoring them. _Now to get me some of that delicious apple pie._ His tiredness forgotten, he sped towards the little town of Ponyville.

Soarin' landed on the soft fertile ground. The big farm before him looked empty. The windows were devoid of any light, further convincing him that everypony that lived inside was probably out. He turned away from the farm, disappointed. He followed the path that lead to the small town, yearning just for a small taste of that heavenly apple pie. The road soon hardened to stone, making his hooves clack audibly. Old houses rose from the ground, their dusty wooden frames creaking in the light breeze. No lights in those either. _Where is everypony?_

He traveled on, his hooves lightly tapping the street as he searched for a sign of the sweet apple pie. Finally, he heard loud, booming sounds coming from a distant building. He moved towards the sound, surprised to see ponies passing by, giggling and laughing jovially. They ignored him and treaded away, apparently too dazed to notice he was a Wonderbolt.

Soarin' passed the crowd of houses and shops, to be met with a particularly lively pink shop. Lights beamed from every orifice, and loud music met his ears, making him flinch. Ponies spilled in and out of the shop, sloppy grins on their red faces. Loud cheers were barely heard above the bashing music, arousing curiosity in the pale blue stallion.

Ponies of many colors pushed past him as he entered the noisy shop. The high pitched snickering of mares and the boisterous laughs of stallions increased when he entered. Cheering sounded once more when the white unicorn at the turntable played another head-ache inducing song. A bright white banner hung on the wall.

_**CONGRATS ON BECOMING A WONDERBOLT!**_

He noticed a pale blue mare hanging at the end of the crowd. She smiled weakly at the ponies who passed her, giving her friendly grins, but the smile disappeared once they turned their heads. She watched as they walked away, a longing look in her violet eyes. The mares went on to converse with another group, one of them laughing as one of the stallions fell on his face as he slipped. Rainbow Dash's lip twitched up into a smile for a mere second, but faded into a slight frown before walking out of the crowded shop. He frowned in confusion, but let it slip. Obviously he wasn't going to get pie, so he flew away, casting a glance at the saddened pegasus mare that soon disappeared behind a thick layer of clouds.

* * *

Rainbow Dash stood outside the beaming cake shop, slowly treading away with her crutch under her foreleg. She began to flutter off the ground, despite the heavy bandages that covered the delicate azure wing. She hovered above the earth, bumbling over the ground, groaning as her wing had to uphold the heavy cast. She gently guided her body towards the night sky, soon careening into a slight breeze that carried her slowly towards her destination. She melded into Luna's dark night, her pale blue coat lost in the ebony abyss, a wavering flight pattern. The winds carried above the trees and pulled her into the soft clouds, where she landed amongst the largest of the clouds. She softly touched her now aching wing, suddenly wishing she hadn't done this. Nevertheless, the mare took off from the cloud, heading slightly North. Finally, she touched down on the front porch of a large cloud home. She warily took in her surroundings, feeling if she looked away, the beautiful home would float away.

Silently, she opened the door, its creaks filling the empty house. She recognized the broken door stop that hung loosely from the door, reminding her fondly of her laziness that prevented her from ever fixing it. Toppling over the hat rack, she moved down the hall, eyes flickering over the pictures that depicted her family and friends. The blue wall had a small chip. She had tried to do a trick in a small, compressed space, she remembered, a smile donning her face.

She stumbled inside the messy kitchen, hiccuping softly. She had yet to clean the mess that she and Fluttershy made trying to make soufflés for Rarity's birthday. She remembered that day two weeks ago, the soufflé had blown up in her face, making Fluttershy giggle uncontrollably. She passed the kitchen and went into the living room, where she plopped onto the soft cloud couch.

With a sudden jolt, she realized she would have to move away. She cast a reluctant gaze at her cloud home, nostalgia sweeping over her. She didn't want to leave.

Her heart tore in two. She didn't want to abandon her friends alone when they might need her. What if danger arose, and she wasn't there to help them? How would the Elements of Harmony survive if she just left to become a Wonderbolt? How could she leave the only ponies who liked her enough to call her "friend"?

But she couldn't just _not_ become a Wonderbolt! All her life she wanted to be a Wonderbolt, ever since her first air show. The thrill of flying with her idols... Doing air tricks with the best flyers... The feeling of freedom as wind sliced her mane... No, she _had_ to become a Wonderbolt.

_But... I don't know want to go..._

She thought of her friends, of how they always supported her, no matter how many times she messed up. They stood by her side as she worked to become one of the elite fliers of Equestria. They cheered her on at the Young Fliers Competition, and they personally sent a care package to her when she was in the Academy. Rainbow Dash sat still for a while, eyes staring at nothing, until she came to a conclusion. This was it. She was leaving home.

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	4. The Introduction

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/ The Introduction/ Story: Bolt/ by KaleidoscopeHeavens/-/

It looked like any other building. Besides the bright gold lightning bolt that hung as a sign above the plain wooden doors, it was normal. It was big, roughly the size of a large mansion, but it looked nothing like a mansion. The paint was a light red color, it's chipped sections revealing a worn brick underneath. The cracked windows had been dotted with water spots, their metal frames rusted. But the bright emblem gleamed brightly on top of it, its ivory wings glowing in the sun.

Rainbow Dash expected more from the Wonderbolts. This building was run down and beat up. It appeared as if it hadn't been occupied in years. She glanced around the empty Canterlot street, and sighed. For a world-class flying team, they sure didn't have that great of a headquarters. Hesitantly, she trudged up the cracked stone stairs and pulled the rusty handle. Locked, she thought grudgingly. Who the hay sends the address to some dump anyways? She kicked the door in frustration and sat on the rough steps.

It had been a month since Rainbow Dash had received her letter. Once she was out of her casts she did nothing but practice tricks and flips. No more than a week later, she had received another letter detailing the Wonderbolts' whereabouts. She stopped her vigorous exercises to go to the headquarters, only to find a dump. She groaned in frustration.

"Who's there?" Came a gruff voice behind her. Rainbow Dash saw a pale green eye sticking out of the mail slot. The eye spotted her sitting on the step and growled, "Who're you?"

She gaped at the eye, then cleared her throat, "My name's Rainbow Dash..."

The eye widened and unstuck itself from the mail slot. Then came a series of clicks Rainbow Dash could only identify as locks being opened. The wooden door swung open, and Rainbow Dash apprehensively walked inside a small office. Papers floated everywhere as a rotating fan whirred and blew everything about the room. Filing cabinets lined the walls, its drawers protruding with papers and folders spilling out of the sides. A dark gray griffon sat at a desk, his light green gaze glued to a gun magazine.

Rainbow Dash scrunched her eyebrows in confusion. "Um."

The gray griffon raised a black talon to a door on the side of the room, eyes never leaving his magazine. Rainbow Dash threw a inquisitive glance at the door and shuffled her hooves. "Right."

She crossed the unorganized office and opened the door quietly. The office she entered now was much bigger, minus floating papers. Instead of filing cabinets lining the walls, bookcases covered the back wall, containing shelves of framed pictures. In the middle of the room, sitting in a desk chair, was a yellow mare. It was Spitfire, captain of the Wonderbolts- her captain. She was writing loudly, not acknowledging the rainbow-haired mare standing at the threshold of her door.

Finally she raised her eyes from paperwork. Her expression was impassive as Rainbow Dash stood straight and saluted. Rainbow felt a small amount of sweat trickle down her forehead as her captain inspected her. Then she did the last thing Rainbow Dash expected, she smiled. "There's no need to do that now, Rainbow Dash. You're part of the team, now."

Rainbow Dash's muscles loosened and she sighed. A bright grin spread across her face. "I won't let you down, Captain!" Spitfire was silent for a moment, making Rainbow Dash nervous. When she spoke, Rainbow Dash held her breath. "You know, I was a little hesitant to let you into the team." Her heart dropped.

"You were big-headed, you were very stubborn, and you had a huge mouth. I thought you would never get into the Wonderbolts, myself." She went on, making Rainbow Dash feel worse. "You had no teamsmanship skills."

"But, when you risked your life to save your friends, to save my life, to save even Equestria, I thought that maybe you learned a couple things. So, ever since the Best Young Fliers Competition, I've been keeping an eye on you. I watched you perform your third sonic rainboom, I watched you join the Academy, and I watched- well Soarin' watched- as you passed the last test in order to become a Wonderbolt. I thought it was time," she crossed the room and opened a cabinet on the side wall. "to give you this." She clutched a brand new blue uniform with a yellow trim and a pair of flight goggles. The new uniform glowed from the sunlight that seeped through the blinds, and the goggles shimmered, the light reflecting off the lense creating a multi-colored halo around it. It was too good to be true. Rainbow Dash grinned, eyes sparkling with tears as she held out her hoof to receive the greatest gift she was ever given. Spitfire smiled again.

"Best! Day! Ever!" Rainbow Dash cheered, looping in the air and thrusting up her hoof. She looked down at Spitfire, who was looking at her with an amused smile. She blushed and floated to the ground. "I'll- uh- go put this on in the locker room, I suppose." Spitfire eyes widened. "Oh, that reminds me! You're going to need somepony to show you the ropes around here. I know just the guy." She opened the door on the other side of her office and stuck out her head. "Soarin'! Come and meet the new member!"

A mere second later a pale blue stallion entered Spitfire's office, a bright shine in his green eyes. "Hey, it's the pie-saver!"

Rainbow Dash smirked in response, hardly believing anypony could remember something as small as that.

Spitfire rolled her eyes before giving off a list of instructions, "First, Soarin', I want you to give Rainbow Dash here a tour of the headquarters. Introduce her to the rest of the teammates, let her get to know them. This should take thirty minutes, tops. Once you're done, we need to practice for upcoming air show in Fillydelphia. Rainbow Dash, if you think you're up to it, I want you to do your Sonic Rainboom." She acknowledged them with a firey orange gaze.

Rainbow Dash smiled and saluted her new captain. "Sonic Rainbooms? Please, I can do that in my sleep."

The captain grinned. "At ease."

* * *

The two Pegasi left the office, entering a new room completely unlike the last. The entire room was a bluish gray, with high ceilings. The windows allowed light to escape into the gray atrium, though it was abruptly stopped by the stone beams that connected two walls opposite of each other. The rows of lockers lay on the left wall, the navy blue and gold metal glowing under the soft light. In the middle lay two square tables, and two Pegasi sat in wooden chairs, staring intently at the cards in their hooves. One was a pale blue mare, with a coat similar to Soarin's. Her curly navy blue mane was in a messy ponytail, and her red eyes were fixated on the cards she held. A fat cigar stuck out of her lips, emitting smoke in large gray clouds. She smirked and layed down her cards to show the stallion opposite her. "Read 'em and weep, Rapid." The stallion groaned as the mare took a mountain of chips away from the center of the table. She dealt the cards. Soarin' gave the mare a mocking stern look. "Windsie, you know you're not supposed to smoke."

The mare did not look up from her cards as she responded, "Yeah, well, according to my therapist, I'm not supposed to gamble either." She glared at the stallion as he showed her his hand, four kings, and took back the chips he lost. He was a pale yellow stallion with pitch black hair. His dark brown eyes watched his hooves intently as he shuffled the cards.

Soarin' sighed his defeat. "Yeah, well, Spitfire will get you later. Put it out before she finds you and come and meet the rookie." The mare raised her scrutinizing gaze to Rainbow Dash, puffing her cigar. "You that rainbow pony?"

"Yup." Rainbow Dash met her gaze.

"Did the Sonic Rainboom?"

"Hay yeah!"

"... You're okay." She held out her hoof to be shaken. Rainbow Dash took hold of her hoof and shook it firmly. "Name's High Winds."

The stallion before her chuckled. "Appropriate name for her considering how much she-" he fell silent at the dirty look she was giving him.

The stallion dealed the cards to her and himself before raising his gaze to Rainbow Dash. "Glad to see you made it on the team, finally. Soarin' and Spitfire told us about you. My name's Rapidfire." When Rainbow Dash shook his hoof, he returned to his losing battle with High Winds. Rainbow Dash heard him mutter curses towards High Winds, and her snarky reply. She and Soarin' walked past the duo, right to one of the lockers.

"Don't worry about those two. When they're not practicing for shows, they're playing cards. Anyways, here's your locker. If you need anything, I'll be by the doors at the end of the room." He trotted towards the back of the room, away from Rainbow as she quickly slipped on the uniform, feeling it conform to her body. She opened the locker, thankful to see a mirror in it. She looked with an inflated heart at her reflection. It fit her like a glove, feeling taught but also quite maneuverable. It was cool on her warm body, making her feel unusually comfortable. The gold trim gleamed under the light, standing out against the bright blue base. She was in a Wonderbolts uniform for the first time ever.

Letting an excited squeal escape, she slipped the goggles over her head, letting it hang from her neck. She followed Soarin' inside to a long hallway, where he began to describe the building itself, "You may have noticed how crappy this building kind of looks on the outside, but rest assured it's completely fine. You see, the Wonderbolts used to be part of the military, now it's just stunt fliers. This used to be their headquarters, but we changed it up a bit. The walls are reinforced with a metal so thick, that if one hundred ponies screamed simultaneously inside this building, nopony would hear on the outside. We used it to ward away paparazzi, but of course they found us anyway. Sometimes, I swear they have this place bugged. I mean, how else would they know about my pie cravings and the exact time I go to bed?"

Rainbow Dash laughed with him as they pushed through heavy double doors and into another large room. It was obviously a gym, with walls so long they appeared to be twenty feet long. Large, expensive pieces of equipment were scattered around the room. Their hooves were muffled by the wood panel ground as they approached two similar looking stallions who were using the treadmills. One spotted Rainbow Dash and Soarin' and said, "Oi, mate," to his friend. They lifted themselves into the air and hovered towards them.

"This is Lightning Streak and Fire Streak. The two jokesters of the team." Soarin' said, if a little negative.

One, a pale cream stallion with lightning yellow hair bowed on his knee. "Pleasure to meet such a fine, young mare as yourself." His voice was Braytish, and his eyebrows lifted suggestively.

The other stallion, a pegasus with light ginger hair and the same creamy coat, pushed his companion out of the way and bowed in a similar manner. "Please ignore my pig-headed brother. I wish I could pay you back in some form... how about dinner?" He smiled a crooked smile.  
Rainbow Dash backed away slightly, tail twitching, and glared at the two of them as they begn to squabble. Finally, with Lightning Streak as the victor, he trotted up to Rainbow Dash and smoothed back his hair. "So, like I was saying," he raised a sly eyebrow. "Dinner?"  
Her glare intensified as she retorted, "Sorry, but no."

Lightning Streak shared a dissapointed look with his brother, before cockily braying, "I'll get the yes. I always get the yes." The brothers shared a brief hoof bump before returning to their exercises. Rainbow Dash turned to Soarin', who was also glaring at the twins. "Always thought they took stuff too far..." He saw Rainbow Dash looking at him, with an eyebrow cocked up, and smiled. "Just don't let them get to you. They hit on every mare in existence. And then get rejected by every mare in existence."

She smiled as they continued on through the gym, passing a couple of their teammates as they walked by. "There's Blaze," he indicated with his hoof at the yellow mare who was furiously doing wing-ups. "She's Spitfire's sister, as you probably already know. Always tries too hard. She's nice, but I think she acts too much like her sister sometimes." They maneuvered throughout the gym, Soarin' pointing out Silver Lining, a laid back gray stallion who was napping on one of the pull-up stations, Breeze, a white pegasus mare with yellow mane who seemed a ecstatic to meet Rainbow Dash, and Misty, a creamy mare with mint colored hair who barely responded when Soarin' called a friendly greeting. They passed the gym and climbed upstairs to the headquarters, and entered a hallway that reminded Rainbow Dash of college dorms.

A door on the far right end of the hallway opened, a pale blue mare trotting out. She had icy white hair and pale violet eyes that seemed to burn with pride. Rainbow Dash smiled widely, already knowing the name of this particular Wonderbolt, Fleetfoot, her favorite member of the team. She approached the two ponies in silence. It wasn't until Soarin' lifted his hoof in awkward greeting when the silence was broken, "Oh... hi, Fleetfoot. This is Rainbow Dash."

The mare regarded her coldly. "Why is she here?" Rainbow Dash's smile faltered.

"She's the new rookie. She just joined the team a month ago. She's the mare that performed-"

"The Sonic Rainboom." Fleetfoot supplied, but instead of the excited look many ponies had when discovering she did a Sonic Rainboom, she scowled. Rainbow Dash's heart fell to her hooves as the mare pushed them out her way and left the room. Soarin's forced smile disappeared when she did, and turned away from the door. "Don't be offended. She acts that way to anypony who threatens her position on the team. Which is pretty much everypony." Soarin' said darkly. Her wings drooped as she followed the stallion down the hall and to a room diagonal to Fleetfoot's. "Anyway," Soarin' opened the door. "This'll be where your staying. I mean, you don't have to stay here, per say, but considering you live in Ponyville..."

The room was small, but big enough to live in. A neat twin bed lay in the middle of the room, a bright Wonderbolt's symbol stitched onto the covers. A sliding-door closet lay in the left wall, while the wall just opposite had a large white dresser. A curtained window was set above the bed, the dark blue curtains refusing any of the light to escape. A lamp sat in the corner of the room, its light turned on. "Remember, practice in five minutes. I'll give you some time alone to settle in. There's some land outside of the headquarters that we use for practice; Wave Chill is probably out there now. Spitfire's pretty hard, so be prepared..." His eyes skimmed Rainbow's face briefly before saying, "I'm looking forward to getting to know you better, Rainbow Dash." He smiled briefly before leaving the room, closing the door behind him.

Rainbow Dash smirked and responded to empty air, "Me too."


	5. The Chaos

Duke's broom sloshed through the muck, making him cringe in disgust. Why is that nopony ever thinks of cleaning up after themselves when the show is done? After sweeping up another soda bottle and putting it in the trash, the old gray earth pony sighed.

A world class janitor, this pony has been sweeping up filthy pacifiers and empty beer cans for thirty years. Sometimes, if he was lucky, he would find a glimmering necklace amongst the muck and sell it to the jeweler. He never once put one in the lost and found. If these ponies ever appreciated what he did for them, then maybe...

The cold night was chilling the old stallion to the bone. The arena was empty, the only sign of life was himself, a gray speck amongst rows and rows of navy blue seats. The arena was roughly one hundred fifty yards, perfect for events such as concerts or stunt flying. Duke never saw a stunt flying show himself, but the Wonderbolts often came to Fillydelphia to do a show here. After seeing what their fans do to the arena during their air shows, he wasn't very fond of them.

Finally, after sweeping up the last of the paper plates, Duke left the hollow arena and entered the dark food court that lined the arena. Slipping past a couple of greasy fast food places, he entered his own small office, also known as a janitorial closet. He plopped the broom down in a random corner before grabbing his coat. He pushed past the door, cursing as he hit his hoof on the corner, and proceeded into the food court once more. Then, something shifted.

He didn't quite know what it was. A shadow crouched stealthily underneath a _Phoenix Fire Nuggets_ cart, then slipped away quickly as the old stallion turned his gaze towards it. He narrowed his cold brown eyes, searching for some unknown assailant. "Who's there?" his raspy voice echoed off the great pillars of the arena. Nothing stirred, and silence screeched in Duke's ears. He shrugged, trotting down the steel staircase. _Damn security not doing their damn jobs..._

Then, several things happened at once. A figure emerged from the inky blackness and lashed out, tackling the old stallion. His hoof striked the side of Duke's jaw, causing him to cry out in pain. He toppled over, clutching his jaw, whimpering. "Pathetic old stallion," chuckled the figure, before landing a swift kick to his ribs. Duke grunted in pain before looking up at the figure. He was a big stallion, with broad gray wings that extended over his back. He wore a black and violet suit that covered the entirety of his body. His cold, calculating red eyes glinted beneath his yellow lenses. "Who are you?" he rasped.

The stallion smiled grimly, revealing a scar that carved over his lips. "Something terrible." He aimed a kick to his face, knocking out Duke, and calmly stepped over him. He entered the food court, grabbing a soft pretzel and devouring it whole, wiping the grease off his face when he was finished. He looked up at the dark night sky and saw a flash of bright purple. He watched the purple blue until it disappeared, soon a lilac mare appeared, her pretty face set in a determined expression. The stallion acknowledged her with a less than charming smile. "Did you get the stuff?"

The mare nodded, and with a velvet wing she opened her saddlebag, that was filled with gas bottles. "I'm assuming you got rid of the guards?" she asked, a soft eyebrow raised.

The stallion nodded and laughed heartily. "You shoulda seen them, Velvet. They fell faster than a stack of dominos. Hell, I'm pretty sure I killed one." He laughed harder.

Velvet Cloud hit the side of his arm, though it didn't hurt that much. "Try to keep low will you, Ember? We're trying to keep the Shadowbolts on the down-low for now."

Ember Skies blinked, unimpressed. "Yeah, because what we're about to do is _so_ on the down-low."

The lilac mare narrowed her periwinkle eyes. "I'm serious, Ember. Nightshade will have both our flanks if we reveal ourselves to the public right now!"

The gray stallion smoothed back his teal hair. "Yeah, yeah, yeah don't worry... none of them really saw me. Except for the last guy, but I think I hit hard enough for him to get amnesia. Yeah, that would be nice."

Velvet rolled her eyes impatiently. "Come on, let's get going. Lightning Dust should be there with the supplies."

Sure enough, when the two entered the open arena, the turquoise mare stood in the middle of field. They bolted down to her, where she shifted restlessly. Her mouth was muffled by a bag, and her eyes nervously darted around. She spat the bag out on the ground when she saw them approach. "A-are you sure we should do this?"

Ember laughed. "Relax, Lightning Dust, I'm an explosives expert. Nopony will ever see the bombs. Well, that is, until the next air show." he laughed cruelly.

Lightning Dust, however, seemed to grow more nervous. "Won't ponies d-" she was unable to finish her sentence.

His eyes glinted mischieviously as he grinned an impish grin. "Yup."

"But-"

Anger boiled inside Ember as he stared at the young mare. "Do you really think they deserve to live? So they can laugh at us because _we_ didn't make it? Because that's what they _DO_ unless we stop their constant, annoying laughter. And there's only one way." he didn't mean for it to come out as a scream, but it happened, and it terrified Lightning Dust.

Lightning Dust gaped at him for a brief moment before clearing her throat. "I'll do it. I'm tired of being underappreciated in this world. If this is what it takes, so be it." her voice was clear, and her golden eyes glowed with hatred.

Velvet dropped her saddle bags, causing the gas to slosh around in the bottles. "Let's get to work then."

By the time they finished, gas was poured in a certain design around the field. Velvet had grabbed a blowtorch and lit the gas, watching the field go up in brilliant flames. Ember had returned from placing the bombs, his eyes alight with delight at the prospect of blowing this place up. Their faces were illuminated by the cruel red light that charred the ground of the arena that so many had watched their beloved Wonderbolts perform. They lifted off, side by side, never looking back. They disappeared into the darkness of the night, leaving only the fires that they lit from their hooves. The message would be clear.

Breaking into the darkness was only one light. It would soon invoke fear into every heart in Equestria. It's message would be repeated in whispers for ages to come. It was the light to remember. The light that nopony would forget.

**THE SHADOWS WILL PREVAIL**


End file.
